home, safe and sound

it's a rainy friday morning here in seattle, like taipei's drizzle only much cooler.  these last couple hours, i've been organizing the pictures from my travels, which has given me some time to contemplate the trip from beginning to end.

the last night i was in taiwan, i took the MRT all the way to danshui, a northern "suburb" of taipei.  it was a long subway ride, from one end of the line to the other, giving me ample time to people-watch as the car went into and then back out of the city.  as we pulled into the danshui station, the river came into view, and then a beautiful, serene mountain--which i later learned was named guanyin, after the goddess of compassion.  finally, i could see where the river met the sea; it was the late afternoon, so the sun was sitting low in the sky over the ocean horizon.  even through the thick plexiglass of the subway car window, the scene was quite breathtaking.

once outside the station, i visited a couple old temples on the surrounding streets, both of which felt very ancient and holy in the fading light.  back along the waterfront, i managed to catch the sun finally slipping beneath the water, and the boardwalk was soon bustling with young couples and tourists and kids on bikes.  i walked along the "old street" and as usual, marveled at the food selection of danshui's version of a night market: stinky tofu, fruit coated in hard sugar, preserved eggs, dried plums, fried everything.  i erred on the lighter, less unusual side with corn-on-the-cob, fresh squeezed melon juice, and some fried rice.

and for a few bucks, i got my feet massaged by a blind man at one of the ubiquitous massage centers in the city.

i mention this all because the trip to danshui seemed to encapsulate everything i loved about taiwan: the lovely and sometimes wacky differences in our cultures, the energy of the people, the natural surroundings, the urban bustle.  the food and the temples.  that intersection of old and new, quiet and noisy, simple and complicated, natural and man-made.  it was an amazing trip, and i hope you enjoyed reading along as i explored how magically all of those contrasts exist on one little, sweet-potato shaped island.

i'll return to portland this weekend, with candy and tea for everyone!  thank you for reading!